Tapales defends WBC Asia title vs Indian foe

MANILA, Philippines – Former unified world super-bantamweight king Marlon Tapales and his Indian foe conquered the scales Friday, a day before their scheduled showdown on Saturday at the Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Tapales stepped in at 121.7 lbs while Saurabh Kumar tipped in at 120.6 lbs, with the Filipino southpaw’s World Boxing Council Asia crown on the line.

“This is a major step towards another shot at the world title for Marlon,” JC Mananquil, the fighter’s promoter said from the Cambodian capital after the official weigh-in.

Tapales is rated highly by the four sanctioning bodies and is in prime position to contest for a vacant world title once Naoya Inoue relinquishes all four belts to invade the featherweight ranks.

Presented by Wurks Energy Drink and KKIF, the slugfest is guaranteed to provide fistic fireworks on fight night.

Tapales and his team arrived in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.